1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an adjustable drive chain saw woodworking machine designed to cut out shaped pieces of wood such as those used for legs and other parts of tables and other furniture. The wood part to be cut is characterized by having undulations in the form of indentations and protrusions so that the drive chain saw must bend to form these curved parts.
2. Description of the Related Art
In large scale production of shaped pieces of wood such as legs for tables and other furniture, there is a need to cut out the legs from hardwood, such as oak, in order to form the legs in large quantities while still providing satisfactory safety so that injuries to a worker may be minimal if not nonexistent.
In the production of large quantities of shaped pieces of wood, such as legs for furniture, there is a need to cut the legs so that they have the necessary curves, that is, indentations and protrusions to meet a desired design shape. At the same time, production must be done in a way that all OSHA requirements are met and the workers"" safety is maximized. Accordingly, there is a need for a machine to make the first cut of the legs which may be from oak boards 1 inch or 2 inches thick. The oak boards are sometimes glued to form 4 inches or more of stock which must be cut with various curved indentations and sometimes protrusions. This should be done with as few machine operations on the cutting machine as possible.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a woodworking machine having a drive chain saw and a plurality of adjustable roller guide elements to engage the drive chain saw whereby at least a portion of the drive chain saw is formed into an undulating shape to cut curved surfaces in a workpiece when the drive chain saw and the workpiece come into contact.
A further object of the invention is to provide a woodworking machine having a drive chain saw capable of cutting curved surfaces in a workpiece while still providing an operator with satisfactory protection against injuries.
The present invention achieves the above and other objects by providing a woodworking machine which includes an adjustable table for holding a workpiece thereon and a drive chain saw spaced from the table and having a cutting means on one edge and drive engaging means adjacent an opposite edge. The drive engaging means engage a drive wheel driven by suitable power means such as a motor. A support plate is positioned above the table and has a plurality of slots therein for adjustably mounting a plurality of roller guide elements positioned to engage both sides of the drive chain saw. Each of the roller guide elements includes at least one groove in an outer periphery thereof and the drive chain saw includes at least one circular chain guide which mates with the groove. Means are provided for adjusting the position of each of the roller guide elements to engage the drive chain saw whereby a portion of the drive chain saw is formed into an undulating shape to cut curved surfaces in the workpiece when the drive chain saw and the workpiece come into contact. The device further may include a plurality of profile cutting bits mounted on the drive chain saw at a position spaced inwardly from the cutting means. The cutting means preferably comprise a plurality of cutting teeth separated by guide pieces.
These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent with reference to the following detailed description and drawings.